A house on the east side was burglarized, with thousands of dollars worth of merchandise stolen.

Stephen Hedval, an Albuquerque resident, said his fiance, Janice Kavanaugh, came back to her 920 Jackson St. house Sunday morning and discovered that someone had broken in and stolen all of the Christmas presents that she had planned to give, jewelry, rosaries and a new 40-inch plasma TV.

“She came home from Mass in the morning and saw her Christmas tree torn down and all the drawers turned upside down.”

All seven of her cats were let out, with all but one returning, Hedval said.

Kavanaugh, who has worked at Alta Vista Regional Hospital for the last 35 years, had been gone from her house since the night before, Hedval said.

“I want Las Vegas to know about this, so word is spread,” he said. “I want these people found.”

As an emergency room nurse, Kavanaugh has probably seen most of the people in Las Vegas during her career, including the burglars themselves, Hedval said. “She gives of herself to everyone.”

Police Chief Gary Gold confirmed that his department responded to the burglary. He said that surprisingly, burglaries have dropped over the last couple of months, with 15 in October, five in November and eight in December. Usually, burglaries rise during the Christmas season, the chief said.